AN Exquisite Experience

Memorabilia- Reminiscence from a remarkable trip to UK

As the sun waited to peep through the blanket of the night, the flight carrying us touched the grounds of the Manchester airport.The team was filled with excitement and eagerness to take the fullest from the experience. Through the run way of Manchester aerodrome as the flight sped to a halt, it seemed to symbolically suggest the rapid pace with which this incredible experience would come to an end.

Identifying Ron Burgess at the airport was not a difficult task with the MMU tag attached to his jacket. He offered a warm welcome making a remarkable beginning to our stay.
The cottage where we were to be put up for the next 7 days was comfortable and cosy. We were shown our rooms which was on the first floor of the cottage. On the ground floor there was a kitchen where we could even cook food if we wished to. The food that was stocked in the kitchen was a great relief to the famished team.

It was interesting to note that the organizer Judie Gibson and her team had left a package on the dining table, with our itinerary outlined meticulously for us to execute. Each day’s activity was mapped well in different envelops with food coupons, train tickets, theater tickets and maps for us to find our way and enclosed. This made it very convenient for us to carry out our routine without having to ask for anything much.

After settling in the room and refreshing, it was time to step out and explore the MMU Cheshire Campus which stands on the sprawling 100 acres land. The campus was not in its thriving self as many students had their vacations. Yet it did represent the charm and elegance it stands for.

The long walk across the campus with Ciaran Hodgers, (who had brought Yarav, the other participant) explaining how each of the rooms in the Contemporary Art wing functioned, gave us an idea about the upcoming workshops and training sessions. These rooms were to witness the training and performances of the budding actors in the team on the 5th of June. We also visited the shopping mall of Crewe which promised a lot of scope for shopping.

The morning of 1st June was pleasant with sun shining brightly rendering a warm welcome to us.

As per the routine, after breakfast at Student Zone, we were expected to gear up to face the morning session of acting workshop with Holly Flower who is the student trainer of MMU. Her sessions were always to be conducted in the morning.
Holly tapped the inner strength to let the actors (students) express what appears to be a difficult scene. Her unique style of training without really demonstrating was quite interesting.
Stephan Berwind trained the students to perform 'As You like it' with proper understanding, intonation and pronunciation. He also took a session on the following day revealing to us the power of the mask. Mask enables an actor to express or communicate with body language. I was also a participant in this activity.

Dr. Patrick explained the importance of control on mind and body while acting out a character. The students were impressed by the grace and elegance of Dr. Patrick while imparting the valuable lessons of psychophysical approaches to acting.
On the first evening of the commencement of the session, we had a table booked for us at Crewe Hall to have dinner with the MMU staff. The magnificent Crewe Hall in Cheshire is a hotel one would want to return to again and again. As we made our way up the tree lined drive, the majestic building stood proud in the heart of the Cheshire countryside.

We usually walked every evening to Crewe railway station to catch the train to Manchester Piccadilly (2ndJune), Birmingham (3rd June) and Liverpool (4th June). While returning it would be so bright that we never felt it was half past eleven or midnight. Due to the summer season the sun never set on some days! And we found it hard to believe that there can be midnights with twilight effect.

In Manchester Piccadilly we saw the play ‘the Ghost Train told by an idiot’at Royal exchange theatre. The play was incredibly captivating. The actors brought the characters alive with panache and passion. Their performance was par excellence.

We also had the opportunity to enjoy the famous musical play ‘Wicked’ at ‘The Lawry’ in Salford Quay. The Untold Story of the Witches of Oz is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and book by Winnie Holzman. The original show was nominated for ten Tony Awards in 2004, winning three, including the Best Actress in a Musical for Idina Menzel. It also won six Drama Desk Awards and one Grammy Award while the London show has been the recipient of five Laurence Olivier Award nominations, winning one.

In Liverpool we were enamoured by the theatre show ‘Spalding Suite’ which centres around the theme of British basketball players living and striving in the shadow of their foot balling peers which is charming and unexpectedly moving.

In Birmingham we watched the play ‘The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time’ at Hippodrome focusing on the Protagonist Christopher John Francis Boone, a young boy whose symptoms and behaviour suggest he has a mild form of autism, perhaps Asperger’s Syndrome. Christopher’s goal in the novel resembles that of many teenage protagonists in coming-of-age stories: to become independent and find his role in the world. Because of his condition, Christopher cannot be as independent as he would like.

Besides this we had an opportunity to travel by tram as well. In spite of the busy life that people lead there, they realise the need to conserve environment. They move on foot to places they go. The maps also impart the information of what contribution one makes in saving environment and how much calorie one would burn if one goes walking to places. i thought this really is motivating.
On the final day of the workshop Nadia, Yarav and Asmita performed on an excerpt from As You Like It which was witnessed and appreciated by the MMU staff.
I was given an opportunity to express gratitude on my behalf as well as British Council for the warm hospitality extended by MMU during our stay. We had really felt very much at home on a foreign land.
London Visit materialized as a kind gesture from MMU. They made arrangements for our travel and gave necessary directions to book tickets for a tour in the Hop on and Hop off bus which was a double Decker bus with open roof on the top. As we went past the streets of London it appeared as though history of London was unveiling itself before my eyes. The London Eye, the peripheral view of Buckingham palace, London tower, Tower Bridge, Big Ben were only a few to mention. We also visited the Kensington Palace where Princess of Wales Diana lived and which was called a "children's paradise". The air in the palace had so much of warmth and amiability for which princess Diana was known. 

The London trip brought an end to the 7day schedule which was so methodically mapped for us by MMU authorities.

The morning of 7th June saw us departing with cherished memories in heart. Ron burgess had come to see us off. As a crowning glory to this inimitable experience, Ron granted us a wonderful drive through the country side of Manchester, unraveling before us a panorama of scenic sights which were awe-inspiring. The view was so enchanting that for some time I stood mesmerized, forgetting to click photographs. Once I summoned myself up and started clicking, the camera just refused to stop. The trip back to airport was too splendid and awesome.
I would have been deprived of this experience had not my school AMS P OBULREDDY PUBLIC SCHOOL supported me throughout our preparation for the School Drama Programme and the valuable inputs by our principal Mrs. Anjali Razdan, Shashi Brahmandam Ma'am, many colleagues and my friend Renu Jain. This trip would have remained a dream, had not British Council selected me as the Best Teacher coordinator. Without the collaboration of British Council and MMU to sponsor the entire tour with the fool proof planning, this experience wouldn’t have been so memorable